What small kitchen appliances do I use? Lemme tell you!

I found a message in my Instagram DMs asking for a post about the small kitchen appliances that I use.

I don't think I've written about this before, so let's run through them. It'll be a fairly short tour because I lean slightly to the minimalist side, and I don't usually buy unitaskers.

I'm going to include buttons with links where you can see these items brand new and can grab the model number, but honestly, many of them can be bought secondhand or refurbished. When an item is well-made, it's a pretty safe bet to buy a used one!

The appliances I have are often not the most inexpensive option, but I typically prefer to pay more if it means I'm getting a product that will work well and last a long time.

Also, please note that my kitchen sometimes looks like this:

It also frequently looks like this:

I usually have it clean by the time I go to bed, but a working kitchen never stays in a pristine state!

Ninja Toaster Oven

I have a secondhand Ninja toaster oven, which is great for cooking small-ish quantities of things. I love it for baking sweet potatoes and for heating up leftovers, such as pizza. I also like to broil my tuna melts in there.

I don't really love it for making toast, though. 😉

I'm linking the model I have below, but honestly, I think it's unnecessary to get one that fancy, at least brand new. I'd just poke around Facebook marketplace or the thrift stores and buy one there!

Kitchen Aid Toaster

I've had this toaster since 2020; I took it with me from my old house, and I think it was recommended by Consumer Reports at the time of purchase.

I use it basically every day, and I have zero complaints about it.

This is the exact model I own, but this seems to be the newer version of what I have.

Capresso Water Kettle

I lived for many years without a kettle, but boy, it is so nice to have one for making tea or hot chocolate. I also use it to quickly heat water to add to a pot on the stove (like to boil pasta).

On work mornings, I pour hot water into my travel mug to heat it up a little, and then I dump it out and pour in my hot coffee. So, I use the kettle for that.

Mr. Coffee Drip Coffee Maker

Lisey bought this many, many years ago, and somehow, it's still kicking. It's not fancy, but I am not a coffee snob at all.

And the small size is perfect for me!

Vitamix 5200 Blender

This is one of my most expensive kitchen appliances, probably, but I love it to pieces. It powers through anything I throw at it, and I've had it since 2014.

I seriously may have this blender for the rest of my life. 😉

I like the 5200 because the pitcher has a narrow base, and that means you can blend small quantities of food with no problem.

I got mine at Costco, but the Vitamix website sometimes has good deals on refurbished 5200s.

Also, if you're interested, here's a comparison between the Vitamix and the Ninja.

Kitchen-Aid Artisan Mixer

This black one, from 2006, is the second one I've owned (I burned up the motor on my first one because a metal piece fell into the bowl and I didn't notice it! I do not consider this Kitchen-Aid's fault.)

I've put my mixer through the wringer with all the baking I've done over the years, and it's held up well.

The bigger pro-level one actually won't beat one egg white; the bowl is too big!

Kitchen-Aid Food Processor

I got this one as a wedding gift back in 1997, and it is still going.

It's not my most-used kitchen appliance, but boy, it sure is handy when you need to do something like slicing a bazillion potatoes to make scalloped potatoes.

I also use it to:

• make banana "ice cream"
• blend sauces (like the cilantro sauce or this roasted red pepper sauce)
• blend up chipotle chilies
• mix up falafel

It's a little easier to scrape things out of the food processor than out of the blender, so I use the blender for pourable things and the food processor for less liquidy things.

Mine is from 1997, so obviously that model is long gone. But I think this one is fairly similar, and it's less than $100.

Whisper Mill Grain Grinder

This is probably my most niche kitchen appliance, and I don't think it's even remotely close to being a kitchen necessity.

I wrote a big ol' comprehensive post about my grain grinder already, so click here if you want to read all about that.

I don't think my exact model is made anymore, but this one is almost identical.

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I didn't realize until now that I have multiple Kitchen-Aid appliances! I guess I like that brand. 😉

Notably, I don't have a crockpot, an air fryer, or an Instant Pot, mainly because I have no idea where I'd put them (and in the case of a crock pot, I wouldn't really use it).

Questions? Comments? Recommendations? Share 'em!